Charged With Breaching an Intervention or Restraining Order? What Happens Next?

Being charged with breaching an intervention order, restraining order or domestic violence order can be more serious than many people initially realise.

A person might believe the alleged breach was minor, accidental or involved contact that the other person welcomed. However, once an order is in place, failing to comply with its conditions can result in separate criminal charges.

These offences are also extremely common. National court data shows that offences involving breaches of violence restraining orders are among the most frequently prosecuted family and domestic violence offences in Australia.

What counts as a breach?

The terminology differs between Australian States and Territories, but intervention orders, apprehended violence orders and domestic violence orders generally impose conditions regulating what a person can and cannot do.

Depending on the order, prohibited conduct might include contacting another person, approaching their home or workplace, communicating through social media, asking somebody else to contact them, or coming within a particular distance of them.

Importantly, the alleged breach does not necessarily need to involve further violence.

A text message, phone call, social media message or simply attending somewhere prohibited by the order may potentially result in charges.

What if the other person contacted me first?

This is one of the most common questions we receive.

A protected person contacting you does not automatically mean you are permitted to respond.

The conditions of the order remain in force unless they are changed or revoked through the appropriate legal process. Even where both parties want contact, responding may expose the person bound by the order to an allegation that they have breached it.

If circumstances have changed, obtaining advice about varying the order is generally much safer than simply ignoring its conditions.

What if the breach was accidental?

Intent and knowledge can be important issues and the precise elements of an offence vary between jurisdictions.

For example, there can be a significant difference between deliberately attending someone’s home despite knowing you are prohibited from doing so and unexpectedly encountering that person in a public place.

The prosecution still needs to establish the required elements of the particular offence.

This is why the surrounding circumstances matter.

What evidence can Police use?

Breaches are increasingly proved through digital evidence.

Police may rely on text messages, call records, social media messages, CCTV, photographs, witness statements, location information and other electronic material.

If you are contacted by Police about an alleged breach, consider obtaining legal advice before participating in an interview or attempting to explain what happened.

Trying to clear up a misunderstanding without understanding the allegation or evidence can sometimes make the situation more difficult.

Can I go to jail for breaching an order?

Potentially.

The available penalties and maximum sentences differ across Australia and can depend significantly on the nature of the breach, whether violence was involved and whether there is a history of previous offending or previous breaches.

A single technical breach involving a message is very different from repeated breaches involving threats or violence.

The Court will consider the circumstances of both the offending and the individual when determining the appropriate outcome.

Get advice early

If you have been charged with breaching an intervention order, AVO, DVO or similar protective order, do not assume the charge is minor simply because nobody was physically harmed.

At EAS Legal, our Criminal Law team regularly assists clients with intervention order proceedings and associated criminal charges across Australia.

Early advice allows the evidence, conditions of the order and circumstances surrounding the alleged breach to be properly considered before important decisions are made.

Frequently Asked Questions